RENEWABLE ENERGY COOPERATIVE
WHY OUR WORK MATTERS
Every community has a right to a clean, healthy environment and equal protection from pollution. Historically, traditional energy systems have funneled neighborhood wealth away from community members, leaving communities like Roseland to deal with the environmental and financial fallout. RECO is changing that dynamic by putting the power back into the hands of the people. Pun intended.
THE CHALLENGES ROSELAND FACES
Within just 5 miles of Roseland, there are 37 industries handling intense toxins. Combined with heavy traffic from nearby major highways and railyards, our neighborhood faces disproportionately high air pollution and some of the highest chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) rates in Chicago.
With a high concentration of older housing stock, lead water pipes, and frequent localized flooding, staying warm, cool, and dry requires a massive amount of energy. Because parts of Roseland have some of the lowest average incomes in the city, these high energy costs place a severe financial burden on local families.
Currently, when Roseland residents pay their monthly utility bills, that wealth leaves the neighborhood entirely. They get zero say in how that energy is made, where it goes, or who gets hired to build the infrastructure.
THE RECO IMPACT
We bring environmental justice and energy democracy to Roseland through three direct actions:
Energy Democracy
Instead of answering to corporate investors, our co-op uses a democratic voting system. Workers and community members make the decisions together.
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Affordable, Clean Power
We harness the sun to generate clean electricity, cutting down the greenhouse gases that drive extreme weather while lowering energy costs
Community Investment
We provide stable green jobs to local youth, invest in the physical redevelopment of the historic Roseland Theatre, and create reliable, independent power that keeps our local economy strong,